Storylines –Wheeling Jesuit GameIn her fifth season, Head Coach Debbie Buff is enjoying her strongest season at Wheeling Jesuit. The Cardinals are ranked regionally in the D2SID poll and stand alone in second place in the Mountain East Conference. Defense has been the calling card for the Cardinals this year, Wheeling Jesuit leads the Mountain East Conference in scoring defense (59.1 ppg), ranks second in defensive field goal percentage (.376) and second in turnover margin (+3.5). Most recently, the Cardinals collected a 63-39 road win at Concord University Saturday. It marked the eighth time this season an opponent has failed to reach 60 points against Wheeling Jesuit. On offense, senior Jaila Bryant carries the load. The Pickerington, Ohio native earned first-team all-league honors as a junior and her 15.1 points per game ranks 11th in the MEC this season. The 5-foot-8 guard is adding 5.7 rebounds and 3.9 assists per game. One area the Cardinals have taken full advantage of is the free throw line. Entering Monday, Wheeling Jesuit has attempted 76 more foul shots than their opponents. Bryant (.836) and teammate Mariah Callen (.804) both rank inside the MEC's top ten in free throw percentage. Last season, the Cardinals limited the Cavaliers to 27.9 percent shooting in a 56-49 win at the Prior Center.
About UVa-WiseUVa-Wise continues to get to the finish line but,
Kristin Kunzman's squad has been unable to cross it in 2016. The Cavaliers dropped their fifth consecutive game by single digits Saturday, 59-53 to nationally ranked West Liberty University. UVa-Wise shot just 25 percent from the field in the loss but forced 22 turnovers. In its current five-game skid, the Cavs average margin of defeat is 5.8 points; two of the five defeats have came in overtime.
Makenzie Cluesman had her strongest game since returning from injury against West Liberty. The junior came off the bench to drain three 3-pointers, Cluesman joined
Kayla Carey with a team-high 12 points in her 17 minutes of action. UVa-Wise may have lost the game at the free throw line, the Cavs went to the line 33 times but made just 20 of the attempts. The 33 foul shots are the most for UVa-Wise since shooting 36 free throws in a season opening win at Winston-Salem State. Shooting also plagued UVa-Wise in its loss to Wheeling Jesuit at the Prior Center last season. The Cavs were unable to hold an 11-point lead with 10 minutes to go as the team made just one of its final 12 shots from the field. Overall, UVa-Wise scored just five points in the final 10 minutes of the contest. Playing its sixth game in the last 14 days, the Cavs will play just one game from Jan. 19 - 25.
